Hoyoverse fans are renowned for dedication, fostering vibrant communities around Genshin Impact, Honkai Star Rail, Zenless Zone Zero, and Honkai Impact 3rd. HoYoFair has become a unifying event, evolving from a fan art contest into a sponsored film festival. This platform funds creators to produce high-quality animated music videos, often rivaling official productions and even featuring in official game concerts. For its fifth anniversary, "Once Upon HoYoFair" brought these exceptional fan creations to the forefront, blending fan-produced tracks with official HOYO-MiX and San-Z songs. But did this grand celebration serve all its devoted fans equally? The experience, unfortunately, depended heavily on which game you championed.
Genshin Impact's Playful Extravaganza
Genshin Impact kicked off the night with an exuberant party vibe, gleefully taking liberties with canon. Some videos, like "time&time," showed characters enjoying our modern world, while others formed pop groups. A Fatui Harbinger led a boy band ("Musication"), a Hydro Archon transformed a traveler and a bard into idols ("Haruka"), and a secret agent joined a K-pop inspired quartet ("OH MY MY"). More ambitious concepts included a bard becoming an acrobat ("Circus Addiction"), a clan head leading secret agents ("Nightfall Ops"), and a chef crashing a cooking show ("The Heavens full-course"). "The Diagnosis" notably explored a scholar's jealousy through a "Hamilton"-esque therapy session, offering refreshing playfulness distinct from the night's more serious official tracks.
Honkai Star Rail's Narrative Rhythms
In contrast, Honkai Star Rail's fan works largely maintained a closer connection to the main story. Whether space adventurers sported urban wear ("PULXE Breakers") or relived their journey in retro JRPG style ("Trash King Quest"), climactic songs like "Proi Proi" felt natural within a setlist of epic confrontations. A magical girl's journey through "Memimemi myunmyun" and her bittersweet farewell in "Ripples of Past Reverie" flowed seamlessly with tragic recounting in "Reikou." Even promotional tracks for space station researchers and an adventurous hacker ("FOCUS," "Side Quest King") concluded the set with narrative consistency.
Fun Amidst Star Rail's Lore
This narrative focus for Honkai Star Rail didn't prevent creative fun. "Glorious" compiled moments from a pirate-themed event, introducing charming new character dynamics. "Dr. Ratio's Metaphysics of Bathing" comically stretched the concept of shower epiphanies, featuring a shirtless philosopher in a bathrobe. My favorite, "TRASH CAN SONG," humorously captured Penacony's residents feeling overshadowed by an awakened entity. These songs provided delightful, chaotic energy and sufficient variety. However, despite equal billing, Genshin Impact and Honkai Star Rail collectively hoarded over half the night's performances, leaving little room for others.
Zenless Zone Zero's Limited Spot
The disparity became clear when two other games received only three songs each, compared to eleven for Genshin Impact and Honkai Star Rail. Zenless Zone Zero presented "Tiny Giant," an official track, alongside two viral fan-songs: "Arareya Kon Kon" and "MoeChakkaFire." While catchy and well-produced – with "Arareya Kon Kon" animated by a known artist and "MoeChakkaFire" inspiring a voice actor's cover – relying on a single fan creator for both fan song slots underscored the limited representation. The choice for the sole official song also felt like a missed opportunity for other strong contenders.
Honkai Impact 3rd's Official Only
The oldest title, Honkai Impact 3rd, faced an even starker reality: no fan-made songs whatsoever. "Regression," "Rubia," and "Da Capo" were exclusively official tracks, all starring a specific main protagonist. An appearing martial artist character seemed present more for marketing visibility than substantial inclusion. While each game's segment was introduced like a new record, one questioned the necessity of switching disks for these last two titles. Their brief appearances felt more like bonus tracks appended to the preceding main acts, almost as if a simple sticker on the Genshin and HSR vinyls would have sufficed.
An Uneven Celebration
This observation isn't to detract from the event's quality, but to highlight the significant disparity across fan communities. The "Song of You and Me" encore, a montage of the night's highlights, undoubtedly thrilled Genshin Impact and Honkai Star Rail fans. Yet, one could easily imagine the brevity of assembling shots for Zenless Zone Zero and Honkai Impact 3rd. "Once Upon HoYoFair" was impressive in ambition, but undeniably uneven in execution. HoYoFair's continued existence celebrates fan passion, showcasing that fan works belong on the same stage as official songs, even if some properties received a far brighter spotlight than others.
